1

"Doesn't mean that much to me
To mean that much to you"

Neil Young is beyond image. He's lived so long, played so long, that it's just him, sans trappings. As for his contemporaries...

They feel that they've got to convince the audience, overwhelm them, prove that they've still got it, are as important as they once were, still as meaningful, you should be wowed just to be in their presence.

But you're not.

It's creepy. So many have had plastic surgery. Because that's the image they want to project, of them in their heyday, youthful, meaningful. They're in stage outfits. And the production! The hi-def screens and the lasers, they've got to have the latest technology, to rationalize the ticket price if nothing else. It's a veritable assault. By time it's over you should feel worn out, like you've had the experience of a lifetime. But it's nowhere close. It's just old people playing old songs.

And then there's Neil Young.

He seemed to be having fun.

Let's be clear, he doesn't need the money. He made that Hipgnosis deal, never mind the cash he's already got. As for losing that money to his ex-wife... She died and probably left it to his children, so that kind of equalizes the equation. In any event, he's got a ton of bread.

But what are you gonna do with all that money? Do you need a plane? How many houses can you buy, never mind needing to manage them.

So at the end of the day, you're a musician.

Let's be clear, so many are not, especially of the younger generation. They're two dimensional constructs made to front the work of behind the scenes writers and producers. Did you see who's headlining Coachella? Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber and Karol G? A big time concert promoter told me he was gonna retire because he was sick of presenting music he didn't like. I give Paul Tollett credit for changing with the ages, forgetting the old acts that he used to hire to headline, but these acts? The attendees are not going so much to see them as to show off, shoot selfies of their outfits. There's not much there. It's showbiz, but more pre-Beatles than anything else.

So Neil Young shows up on stage in the clothing he wears off stage. This was a thing back when he broke through in 1970. But his contemporaries, they started showing up in tuxes at awards shows, wearing dignified clothing on stage. I can't remember ever seeing Neil in a tux, he's stayed true to himself when so many have not.

2

So the Chrome Hearts are the best band Neil's played with since Crazy Horse. No one is hogging the spotlight, everybody's just doing their job, however, bass player Corey McCormick was really into it, in a way the oldsters never are. He's bouncing on stage, singing into the mic, he was in the moment, the audience was secondary, he had the music in him.

And Micah Nelson never showed off. Towards the very end he had the spotlight upon him, and he threw off a solo, but otherwise he blended in, which is the goal of a band, right?

As for drummer Anthony LoGerfo... Most drummers are demonstrating their physicality, oftentimes showing off. This guy was so relaxed it was almost like he was playing at a bar mitzvah. I mean it's the music that counts, right? It is show business, but he's not the star, he's just doing his job, simply.

And on keys Spooner Oldham. Reminded me of seeing Chris Spedding playing with Bryan Ferry. A legend as a sideman, amazing!

But that's all in support of Neil. Not that he's hogging the spotlight. He barely talks to the audience. Except when someone down front said happy birthday and he said IT'S NOT MY BIRTHDAY! This was not HELLO CLEVELAND!

The focus was on the music.

The opener was "Ambulance Blues." The last song from 1974's "On the Beach," the first record after the live album "Time Fades Away," which pushed all the soft rock fans of "Harvest" away. Neil continued to make good albums thereafter, but he wasn't truly up front and center again until 1979's "Rust Never Sleeps," with "My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)." And he sang it last night, but the funny thing is rock and roll has died. Not only in terms of dominance, but in terms of pushing the art form forward.

But if I told you I could hum "Ambulance Blues" before last night I'd be lying, even though I bought "On the Beach" when it came out. "Walk On"? Certainly. But not this.

But Neil's keeping the show interesting to him. A little of this, a little of that. He's got a giant catalog. And some were hits, but once you enter this century, none of these old acts have hits. Does that mean you should ignore less familiar work if it's good? NO!

Like "Sun Green." That's why I wanted to go, to hear this track from "Greendale," which I loved. And he played "Be the Rain" from that project too. These songs I know well.

But song #2 was "Cowgirl in the Sand." I can't say I bought Neil's solo debut when it came out, but I did purchase "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere." Everybody likes "Cinnamon Girl," which is great, the outro is amazing, but the best songs on that album are the side closers, "Down by the River" and "Cowgirl in the Sand." And at some shows Neil has played the former, but at this one he played the latter. You know, with the verses and then the extended solos... This show was not for the faint of heart. If you don't like loud and noisy, this was not for you. Not every song, but when the number called for it... Neil would pick out notes on his black Les Paul and it was like being in the garage, in that there was no need to get it exactly right, but more to make a glorious sound all together, to be in the moment and feel the music. And there was one additional instrumental section beyond the recorded take before a final hosanna.

And that's one thing I noticed, how different the experience was listening to these live takes as opposed to the records, which I've played ad infinitum. No matter how well they were recorded, they sound different. They're set in amber, they're encapsulated, whereas the live versions were truly alive, they breathed, you could feel the humanity within. There are no hard drives, this is all done without a net.

With no production, the music is enough.

3

"Southern Man"?

Check.

"Ohio"?

I wondered if he would change the lyrics, make them contemporary, but it was still Nixon coming.

"Only Love Can Break Your Heart" was never my favorite on "After the Gold Rush," but it was less sing-songy and more heartfelt here.

And sure, everybody loved "Like a Hurricane," which sounds like a hurricane, and "Hey Hey, My My," but some of the biggest applause came after the performance of "Big Crime."

"No more great again
No more great again
Got big crime in DC at the White House"

Neil's not afraid.

"Don't need no fascist rules
Don't want no fascist schools
Don't want soldiers walking on our streets"

In a world where everybody with something to lose, a company, a job, is kissing Trump's ass, Neil sees no need to. And isn't that the role of the artist, to speak truth to power? We need that now more than ever. And Neil's fans were on his side. Not that he cared if he pissed a Trumper off.

But the highlight was "Old Man."

4

"Old man, look at my life
I'm a lot like you were"

The second most famous song on "Harvest," which dominated the airwaves in the winter and spring of 1972.

Sure, the hit was the mellow "Heart of Gold," but the other track that stood out was "Old Man," in an era where the music was for the young people, who believed they ruled.

This was an era where the old people didn't want to be young. I mean no one wants to die, but believe me, our parents weren't envying our lifestyles, donning our clothing and listening to our music, no way.

"Old man, look at my life
Twenty four and there's so much more"

TWENTY FOUR??? Neil is now seventy nine. And how old are you? Most of his original fans are septuagenarians. How in the hell did he write this, record so much great material at twenty four? He was wise beyond his years.

Then again, Neil said the last time he played the Hollywood Bowl was in the sixties, with Stephen and Buffalo Springfield.

So much time has passed, how did we become the old men?

And it was mostly old people in attendance, a lot of gray hair. They stuck with Neil, they were not casual fans, this was a pilgrimage.

"I've been first and last
Look at how the time goes past"

It was about winning. That was the culture of the boomers. Sure, it was kumbaya around the campfire, but you wanted to stick out, leave your mark, be a champion.

And now it's all irrelevant.

All that time has gone past. Can we have some perspective?

For a lot of people, no. They're the ones going to the show to live the days of yore, subjected to a calcified performance by people stuck in an era long past.

Last night's show definitely existed in the present.

And it really wasn't about a show, it wasn't about what you saw, but what you heard. It really wasn't that much different from the seventies.

I won't quite say Neil's stuck there as much as he never sold out, never forsook his values, he stayed true to himself when almost none of his contemporaries did. And that makes him a revelation.

Neil Young is not warm and fuzzy. What you see is what you get. At this point he's not worried about satiating you, he's not playing to the audience, hell, a lot of the time he was playing to the other band members, but he's comfortable in his skin and his work and knows enough people are interested that he doesn't have to grovel for ticket sales. This is what he does and it resonates.

So...

How much longer will he be able to do this?

Today Dave Mason retired. And Robert Redford died. The endless road does not go on forever.

And what is a life about. Think about this, Neil Young devoted his entire life to making music. That's his mark. And unlike so many he never stopped making albums, wasn't worried about commercial acceptance, he's an artist and artists produce.

So...

There were some hits and some deep cuts, you didn't feel like you were getting a set show, you knew not only that another night would feature different songs, but even the same songs would sound a little different.

The music was alive. That's the magic of the concert experience, which can never be replicated by a stream.

This was not a finale, but just another stop on an endless road. He's on his journey and so are we. Last night we connected at the Hollywood Bowl, we'll reconnect in the future, down the line. With new stories and new songs. The same but different, like life itself.

So roll another number for the road.

That's what Neil and the Chrome Hearts did before they left the stage last night.

I hope you did too.

It's all about keepin' on. With your eyes open. Never forgetting the past, but continuing to think and grow.


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